Mike's review
Migraine
by Oliver W. Sacks
Mike's review
Migraine by Oliver W. Sacks
Mike's review
rating:
bookshelves:
favorite-authors,
medicine,
science-technology,
sociology-anthropology-history
A really fascinating, in-depth look at a common but mysterious illness. Sacks is one of my all-time favorite authors because of his thoughtfulness and thoroughness. He writes about medicine as both a science and an art, the study of patients just as much as, or more than, disease. (He explains that the primary method in treating a migraine should be to LISTEN to the patient.) The book starts with a historical account of the study of migraines and descriptions of its many forms. But the most interesting sections, for me, were the explanations of the biological and psychological "roles" that migraines are thought to sometimes fulfill, and the modern discoveries that have provided new insights into the illness (and its treatment) and the human brain/mind in general.
